Ship’s Log
Monday, June 21, 2010
Dear F&F;,
June 2, 2010
More Maupiti (posted from Mopelia Atoll via HF Radio)
It was super fun making the “fins” video and we are so glad we could get it on the web from here. It took 70 minutes to upload it via the not very good wifi system here. This afternoon we loaded more still photos, both topside & underwater from Mao-pee-tee. More to upload tomorrow morning.
The weather was calm overnight and this morning. Americans Doug and Eileen, who are staying at the pension we had dinner at, joined us for the next days dives. It was fun to chat with them. They have been living in an upscale development outside Guadelajara for 7 years. There are lots of other retired Americans. They said that Guadelajara area has the largest community of Americans living outside the U.S.A. Formerly from California and Washington , they look fit & attractive. I was shocked when Scott told me he was 67! Don’t know her age, but they’ve been married 30 years, no kids, seem very happy. Retired 25 years! Good for them.
The sea was much calmer than the day I bashed my finger. I was also super careful, but I actually think the underwater compression did it some good. I was awake about 30 minutes during the night and massaged it a lot with Topricin (homeopathic topical anti-inflammatory) to help drain the swelling in the tip and did some cautious stretching. The finger pad is still pretty taut feeling, but the color is not black anymore, just purply-red. I am not worried about it, just an inconvenience.
The coral was as beautiful as every time. I actually put on eye-liner & mascara! So you might see my eyes more with some close ups. In some photos, I really look like my Dad, even with my mask on! I have to watch that I don’t squint which wrinkles my middle forehead. Scott took wide angle video today, but I did not model a lot. I actually grabbed the camera a couple times to try to catch an artistic idea I had. We will review the footage tonight and see what we got. That is always fun. Sometimes disappointing, but we always learn something. Last night Scott listened to part of an educational DVD about the video editing program Final Cut Pro (Apple). They suggested taking a grey and white card to shoot a new scene if there is a change of lighting. He has this so carried it today. It will be interesting to see if that helps him adjust the colors in post production to be more realistic. Some of the shark footage on “Fins” was too green. He hopes to correct it later. I am crazy for the jelly fish still photos (Maupiti Underwater Gallery). He tried to make me remove some, but I kept all the ones I love. It’s OUR website, right? I figure if y’all get bored of too many photos you can just skip along quickly.
The weather is setting up for possible departure tomorrow late afternoon. We will have an overnight passage to Mopelia (Mo-peel-ee-uh). Thankfully Jerome on the blue Switch (s/v Na Maka - Spirit of the Sea in Polynesian) has been there a few times, so we may follow him in. He says the most important thing is to not have clouds or rain. You need to be able to see down into the water to avoid the coral heads in the narrow pass. I am sure it will be just fine, like when we entered here. It is on the non-windy side, so waves are not a concern. But there can be a strong out flowing current.
While Scott was at the WiFi station uploading photos, I had a nice walk. The sun was behind the mountain making dusk last a long time. We had seen a cargo boat come in while we were diving so I scored some produce at the market: cabbage, carrots and apples. At a roadside stand I bought two indecent cucumbers. At another store I bought 2 liters of boxed milk. The dive guide and his wife passed me on the street and gave me 6 eggs. I had him stop at the fuel dock en route to the dive sites this morning to ask if I could “reserve” eggs like I did the other day. Different gal, not cooperative. Lionel and Kristel took pity on me, giving me 6 of their own eggs and would not even let me pay. Very sweet. Meanwhile, where I bought the produce, I got an agreement to reserve 2 dozen more eggs to pick up tomorrow. I will be there on the spot by 10:30 a.m. which is when she said to come. We eat 4 eggs per day, so go through them quickly. I hope the grapefruit roadside stand is open in the morning too. I would take about 10 more of those. Very sweet and no seeds. The membranes are tough so you have to fully dissect it, but it is worth it. Mopelia is really “off the grid” so I am happy to be stocked up with food. We will also top off our diesel. We may be able to sail there, but charging the batteries, filling scuba tanks and desalinating water all takes generator time which means using diesel. The island AFTER Mopelia should have diesel and more food. That will be our first English speaking island since we left California (Aitutaki in the Cook Islands).
I guess I am ready to move on. It’s weird, but good I think, that I feel like I could happily stay here longer. But I felt that way about Raiatea, Tahaa, Huahine and Bora Bora too. Pretty much since we left Tahiti proper, life has been good!
It is rarely ever over 90 anymore, and when we are submerged 2+ hours per day, it really helps us keep cool for the whole afternoon and evening. Rain is intermittent, so it is always a Chinese fire drill to close all the hatches. We especially try not to drown our laptops or WiFi antennas. I am going to go enjoy the air conditioning in our cabin while Scott has the generator on. The dehumidifying benefit of the air conditioning feels very nice.
Cindy and Scott
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Saturday, May 29, 2010
Dear F&F;,
May 28-29, 2010
We have not been diving again because of persistent strong winds/waves
outside the lagoon, where the dive sites are. Too rough to be comfortable.
Where we are anchored is fine. The breeze keeps us cool. The wind chop on
the water is a bit strong to swim against plus we are anchored in sand so it
is not that interesting to snorkel or swim off the boat.
Our package of generator oil hoses & warranty replacement video lights did
not arrive on the morning plane yesterday, but it was there on the afternoon
plane. Why? Glad you asked. The morning plane was so full with people,
they ran out of “weight” space for the cargo. So, they sent it in
alphabetical order. “Yacht – Beach House” was last on the list. Fortunately,
their promise of it’s afternoon arrival came true. It is pretty interesting
to watch the prop jet land on this narrow strip of motu. A few tourists
departing & arriving plus locals waiting for supplies from Papeete. One of
the pension (B&B;) operators asked me if I had just arrived. In poor French I
said, No I am on a boat. He gave me a fragrant welcome lei, since one of his
expected clients did not arrive. It is a string of Tiara flowers which are
white & smell delicious. I have them hanging in the galley.
Scott could not bear to wait, so we dug right into the generator oil hose
replacement project. It was a bit disconcerting at first since the
replacement hose was significantly smaller than the original (leaky) hose.
But the fittings were the same size & he had the foresight to order extra
fittings. We spent over 2 hours: he in the awkwardly small space contorted
on top of our anchor line and chain. Me, fetching & handing him various
tools, (doing as he says,”My best Vanna White routine”), shining a
flashlight & mopping up endless drips of oil. Sadly, upon testing we
discovered the 2nd hose was also leaking, but we called it a night & tackled
that this morning.
I must be acclimatizing & the season must be changing: I actually got cold
out there in the stiff breeze for 2 hours last night. We had a lovely moon
rise. I giggled at myself running in to grab a sweater when I could plainly
see the temperature still read 80 degrees!
This morning Scott & “Vanna White” tackled the 2nd hose replacement. We did
not have sufficient new sized fittings, but he made do and it “knock wood”
it is working with no leaks so far.
This afternoon I snorkeled an hour scraping the hula skirt of algae off the
boat’s hulls. It was a good workout against the wind produced waves and I
felt cold by the end. The water temp on our boat gauge says 81.4. We’ll see
what we find when we next go diving, planned for Monday. Five days ago it
was still 84 at depth. We hope that the conditions are favorable for diving
on the east side of the island where the beautiful coral sites are. The new
owner came by in his boat to tell us he did not get to keep the same phone
number that was supposed to have been kept when he bought the business. We
can tell he is just getting settled. We gave him our local cell number &
asked that he call us day by day so we can decide if diving is a “go” for
that morning or not.
We had a blast making a new shark video for the web. See our Video Gallery,
“Fins of Bora Bora”, music is “Fins” by Jimmy Buffet. It is faster paced and
more fun than some of our prior footage. We’ll see if we can get good enough
WiFi or more likely load it from shore right next to the antenna. The next
island for sure does not have internet or ANY infrastructure for that
matter.
I must be settling into this life because the days are just kind of gliding
by. Mainly from meal to meal. I hope to find some semblance of fresh
vegetables soon. I used my last carrot, broccoli & bell pepper today. I have
a few apples, kiwis, one grapefruit. Then it’s frozen peas & green beans. We
may rent bicycles to circumnavigate the island. It is so small they say it
takes only about an hour to ride around.
Enjoying Maupiti Island life,
Cindy & Scott
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Dear F&F;,
May 26-27, 2010
Jerome and Natalie invited us aboard their Switch 51 “Na Maka”, the blue
Switch for dinner. I had already cooked Szechuan eggplant with shrimp in the
morning, so added some rice to take as my contribution. The beef roast with
potatoes was delicious. Having someone else cook a meal is always a treat.
When we arrived, Natalie was trying to have the children finish their
dinner, which was already served. The twin boys tussled as expected. I felt
a bit sorry for 10 year old Leo who disappeared quickly with his IPod.
Natalie said any two of the boys get along fine, but when all three are
together, there is a lot of fighting. She is a brave woman! But they seem to
be enjoying themselves and it sounds like we will be on the same path for a
while which is nice. Lucky for us, both of them speak English very well, so
Scott chatted with Jerome as I talked with Natalie.
Mid morning we dinghied to the fuel dock with 5 of our 5 gallon jugs. The
day before, I had “reserved” two dozen eggs. I also bought vinegar from the
“market” with a walk up window. Yesterday the proprietor had let me inside
to more closely view what was for sale. At a roadside stand I bought two
pamplemousse (grapefruit, $3 US each). We think the Seventh-Day Adventist
church members must own all the businesses since everything is closed on
Saturdays. And we did not see any alcohol in the market, as SDAs don’t
drink.
There were posters about a local artisan art fair. There were about 50
vendors with nicely displayed shell jewelry, wood carvings, pareos & other
chachkies (yiddish). A band was there but not playing yet. NO ATTENDEES. It
was sad. I seemed to be the only one browsing around. The artists were
dressed up but not smiling. I am not a collector, gift-giver, or shopper and
there was nothing special at all. I don’t know if the mayor of the island
decided this was a good idea, but without a cruise ship or some group of
tourists to attend, I don’t know what they were thinking! They did not seem
to be buying from each other. The oddities of island life…
Scott’s packages are both in Papeete and the agent will put them on the
plane to arrive here tomorrow morning. He will tackle the generator oil hose
replacement ASAP. I pray the new video lights really work. It will be so
disappointing if they are lemons too. So many companies are bad about bench
testing their equipment before sending it out to the customer.
We hope that the wind that has been making the outside of the reef too rough
for diving will start to subside soon. I hope to dive here a lot more. Scott
always has his eye on the weather and will be looking for a window to sail
to the next island, Mopelia, which is an atoll and will be our last stop in
French Polynesia. It’s hard to believe but we’ve been here for almost
exactly one year! I can happily stay here longer, if I get to dive. If we
are not diving, we may as well move along. That is my feeling. Of course
there are repair and maintenance days. And for Scott many hours of photo and
video editing.
Tonight I received Vincent’s Ships Log: his account of their stay with us.
It is priceless. It made me laugh and cry, re-living the magic week we had
together. I hope you enjoy it.
Thank you all for writing. I still get “homesick” for my friends & family.
Your emails bridge the gap between us.
Cindy & Scott
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